Mirror Images
by Kiwi ingenuity
Summary: Something was off. He knew it. But what it was, he just couldn't put his finger on.
1. Chapter 1

**Welp, it's been a while, but I finally decided to get off my ass and write another fan fiction. I've had this idea going around in my head for about a year or so, but it either wasn't developed enough to write, or it was too close to exams. Now, they're all over so I can actually do this.  
**

* * *

The normally bustling city of New Olympia was almost empty, as the sun had long hidden itself beneath the horizon. The only sounds to be heard were those of an occasional car making a late dash home, and the humming of crickets. Light coming only from the rusty old street lights hanging over the road. But the peace was interrupted all too quickly as a pair of teens trampled through the city. Their obnoxiously coloured hair stood out even in the darkness.

The slightly faster, red headed one skidded to a halt in front of an alleyway, waiting for her friend to finally catch up to her.

"Gods you're slow. At least _try_ and keep up." She mocked. Panting, her friend came to a stop in front of her. He had his hands on his knees, which were probably the only things keeping him from toppling over in a heap.

"You gotta… admit... I was… close." He retorted between breaths.

"Well, maybe just a lit-" A loud bang sounded, interrupting her words. The two slowly walked towards the noises origin. Scanning the alleyway, they found nothing.

"What was that?" The girl asked.

"Eh, probably some lousy cat trying to raid one of the trash cans." Another clang sounded, followed by a loud yowl. A small ginger bundle of fur raced out, barely missing the two onlookers.

"See, I told you. Now come on, we should probably head back, or else Athena will kill us." He turned around, his back to the alley. The sound of footsteps came from behind him, and he assumed it was simply his friend. That was until he heard her high pitched yelp. Immediately his body swivelled around to face the source of the cry. "Atlanta!"

In front of him stood this 'Atlanta' with a golden sickle held up at her neck. Behind her stood a tall man with pitch black hair and clothing, and a malicious grin plastered on his face. He had pinned the girl's arms behind her back, preventing her from breaking free. "Cronus…" Within a flash her friend had whipped out a small handheld object. He raised it in the air, preparing to attack.

"Get your hands off of her or so help you I will…"

"Ah ah ah… I wouldn't do that Archie. You don't want to hurt your precious little Atlanta now do you?" He pulled the sickle closer to emphasize his point.

"Don't listen to him! Rip his head off!" The said girl hissed. Archie's eyes darted between her and the villain. His teeth were bared out of rage, but the rest of his face displayed a far different expression. Fear.

Breathing out heavily, Archie raised his hands in defeat, and bowing his head. A clang sounded as his weapon collided with the ground. "Alright." Atlanta noticeably gasped.

"WHAT! No! Archie!" His head came up to face her for only a few seconds, but it was long enough for her to see the silent apology sprawled across his face.

"Well then, I guess we'll be going then." The man smiled wickedly as a black portal materialised behind him. Tugging on the golden weapon, he hauled himself and the young girl through the portal, before the boy could even blink. Shooting his head up, he managed to catch one last glance at her before she disappeared. She almost looked, scared? But no, the Atlanta he knew would never be afraid of anything, would she?

A sickening feeling flooded over him as he realised what had happened. "Oh shit… OH SHIT. What have I done?" Panicking he fumbled through the front pocket of his oversized hoodie, until his hand finally connected with the metallic object he was searching for. With speed Atlanta would envy, he punched in the first phone number to come to mind. Impatiently he waited for the small black screen to flare into life. "Come on…" Then finally, a flurry of multi coloured pixels flared up onto the small interface.

"Archie, what the hell? It's like midnight…" The bulky (somewhat pixelled) brown haired man complained.

"Atlanta's been taken!" Archie yelled into the device, slightly annoyed by his friend's calm tone.

"What! By who?"

"The tooth fairy… Cronus you idiot!"

"Oh no... I'll, I'll go wake the others. Come back to the brownstone."

* * *

Archie walked through the door of the brownstone, only to be met face to face by a fuming red head.

"How could you just go and let her get kidnapped!" She growled.

"You think I _wanted_ this to happen?" He hissed. "If I had made a move against him he would have killed her!"

"Wow you two, calm down." A boy with light brown hair entered the room, placing a hand on each rivals' shoulder.

"Now isn't the time to argue, we need to find Atlanta." He turned his head to face the shorter of the two opposing team members. "Now what the hell were you two doing out so late?" The boy's head fell, most of his previous anger subsiding.

"I'm sorry, we just, lost track of time I guess. I never wanted any of this to happen!"

"Don't worry Arch," The three teens turned to the living room entrance to find a short, African American boy standing there. "This is Atlanta we're talking about. She can take care of herself."

"I know, I know, but, can we just find her, please?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the reviews. :3 You guys are the best.**

* * *

The teenagers had all gathered in the living room. They surprisingly awake considering the time of night. "All right. So what are we gonna do this?" The group's leader questioned.

"Could we try tracking her PMR?" Herry asked.

"I highly doubt Cronus would allow us to track her that easily." The small African American boy beside him countered.

"Do you have any other ideas?" The purple haired cause of their situation retorted.

"No…" He sighed. "I guess it's worth a shot, but it will never work…" The boy pulled out his PMR, and messed around with the settings for a few seconds. Seven small dots appeared on the screen. Six in one cluster, and one off on their own. "Wha… Wow. Cronus must be losing his touch."

"What do mean?"

"Her PMR is still giving off a signal." Archie's head immediately shot up, and he practically leapt off of his chair.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's get a move on!"

"I dunno…" The smaller boy clanked at the small blue device. "This seems kinda suspicious…"The ginger haired girl sitting opposite him then spoke up. "Do you think it's a trap?"

"I dunno… Maybe."

"When is anything Cronus does not a trap?" Archie hissed. "Let's go!"

"Archie's right. We can't stay here any longer. If it is a trap, I'm sure we can handle it." Standing up, Jay gestured towards the door, and the team soon clambered into the large red car outside the building.

* * *

The six of them huddled outside a large cave, weapons in hand. "All right, we all know the plan?" A series of nods followed. "Alright, let's go." Slowly they entered the cave, hugging the wall to stay hidden. Their only source of light was that emitted from Archie's PMR, as he walked a metre or so ahead of the group.

"Come on you guys hurry up!" He groaned.

"Alright! Calm down, we're…" As Odie was about to retort, the team saw a dull light emerging from one of the tunnels. The all ran into the room, except for Jay. He quickly grabbed Archie's hood, pulling him backwards.

"You, go find Atlanta." He whispered. The younger of the two immediately nodded, before dashing off away from the tunnel.

Jay strode into the room, his sword unsheathed. "Ah Jay, nice of you to join us." Cronus smirked, emerging from the opposite end of the cave. "What's your plan now Cronus? What do you want with Atlanta?"

"Oh, now why would I tell you that? That would be spoiling the fun now wouldn't it?" The man snapped his fingers, and a group of three or so giants stomped into the room. "Oh, and tell little Archie he's never going to find her." As he finished his sentence one of the giants lunged towards Jay. Reacting quickly he darted out of the way, his head just missing the giant's grasp. Swiftly, he slashed the giants arm with his sword. The giant howled in pain. Out of retaliation it swung its other arm directly into Jay's chest, sending him across the room. A thud echoed throughout the chamber as his body collided with the stone walls. He groaned and lifted his head up. The giant was charging towards him, ready to attack again. Eyes tight shut; he waited for the blow to come.

* * *

Archie raced through the halls of the cave, the small flashing dots on his PMR the only guide. He was pushing himself to run harder than ever before. It wouldn't take long for Cronus to realise why he was gone, and he'd no sooner send a gang of giants after him. Or worse, Atlanta. But it was harder than he had expected. Sure, the PMR told him where she was, but it didn't tell him how to get there. With all these different twist and tunnels, he hadn't a clue which one lead to Atlanta. He just had to guess, and hope that he would end up in the right place.

"Wah!" He skidded to halt as a wall came into his view. Another thing that made it difficult? He couldn't see further than a metre in front of him. Examining it closer he realised it wasn't a wall, but a rock fall. "Hmm. Great… Another dead end." He groaned. Swivelling his body around, he raced off in the other direction, back to find another path that may lead to the girl.

* * *

Jay slowly opened his eyes. The punch he had expected never came. Instead of seeing the giant charging towards him, it was flailing its arms around wildly, something on its back. Upon closer examination, he realised the thing, was Herry. He had wrapped his arms tightly around the giant's neck, attempting to strangle it. But the giant soon managed to grab a hold of the boy. Pulling him in front of its face, the giant growled. Thinking quickly Jay leapt to his feet. He was still a little wobbly from being slammed into the wall, but it was manageable. He charged forward and plunged the sword into the giant's fat stomach (arguably the weapon wasn't long enough to do much damage). It howled in pain and immediately dropped Herry. "Thanks man."

"No problem."

On the other side of the room he could see Theresa and Neil had managed to take down another giant. Meanwhile Odie hid in the corner, his claustrophobia taking hold. The last monster could be just seen running off into the distance. Cronus snorted. "If you want a job done well you have to do it yourself…"

* * *

"Arrgg!" Archie groaned as he reached another dead end. "Atlanta where are you!?" Shoulders slumped, he turned back around and walked to the last fork in the road. He walked slowly down the path, no longer racing in an attempt to find her. His energy was almost spent, as was his hope. "Maybe I should call the others… Maybe Odie will be able to figure out a way to navigate these god damn caves?" Just as he was about to reach for his PMR, he heard a noise coming from further down the tunnel. Someone, or something, was down there. "Atlanta!"

Breaking into a run, he quickly turned the corner. Sitting there, with her hands and feet bound, was Atlanta. He sighed in relief. "Thank god you're okay…" He dropped down in front of the girl and pulled her into a tight hug. "Oh thank Zeus you're here. I was so scared!" She said. Archie pulled away and stared at her, puzzled. "Wow, it must've been bad," he joked. "You never admit you're scared!" Atlanta looked a bit taken back at this, but quickly shook her head. "Yeah, I was uh, just joking, yeah! I sure fooled you!" She laughed half-heartedly. Archie raised an eyebrow, but decided to ignore it.

Suddenly he realised Atlanta was still tied up. "Oh, whoops. Let me get those for you." Using the sharp point of his whip he was able to cut the strands of rope with ease. Atlanta swivelled her hands around her wrists, testing the movement. "Thank you." He nodded. "Are you alright? Did Cronus hurt you, or anything?"

"No, no. I'm fine." Taking her hand, the two of them stood up.

"Come on, the others are probably getting their asses whooped by now, we should get going."

* * *

The two made it back through the cave quite quickly. All the time Archie had spent with Atlanta had enhanced his sense of direction a fair amount. It wasn't long before they came to the large tunnel their friends were fighting in. In the centre Jay and Cronus were battling head to head, sword against sickle. Archie was about to jump into the fight, when Cronus caught sight of him. Immediately he backed away from Jay, a slight smirk on his face. "Oh, it would seem you have thwarted my plans once again…" His voice was strangely mocking. "I had hoped you'd get lost in there, but oh well." With that, he disappeared into one of his trade mark portals.

The other team members headed over to Archie and Atlanta. Wide smiles all appeared on their faces when they caught sight of Atlanta, now safe and sound.

"Huh. That was easy…" Archie remarked.

"Yeah… Almost too easy."


	3. Chapter 3

The drive home was one of quietest in a long time. This was mostly due to the fact they had all been awoken at such an ungodly hour in the morning, and were now all fast asleep. Except for Herry, who had managed to grab a cup of coffee before Archie had gotten back to the Brownstone, (and was also driving) and Atlanta, who was staring out of the car window. She had been unusually silent throughout the drive. Herry decided to assume it was just nerves being rescued.

It wasn't long before the truck came to a standstill outside the Brownstone. Herry slammed his fist against the car horn, causing all the other team members to jolt awake in shock. "What the hell was that for?" Archie complained.

"Dude, there is no way I am carrying you all in there. Now get out of my truck!" Groaning the sleepy teenagers stumbled out of the truck, into the large building in front of them.

Archie grudgingly made his way down to his room. He was about to close the door, when he noticed Atlanta standing behind him. "Uh… Atlanta, your room is over there…" He gestured further down the hall way. She blinked, before shaking her head.

"Right, sorry. My mind must be on autopilot…" She turned to go towards her own bedroom when Archie placed a hand on her shoulder, turning her back to face him. "Are you sure you're okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied nervously, before she twisted out of his grasp and walked back to her own room.

* * *

Archie walked through the halls of the brownstone. The sun was almost at its peak in the sky. He was heading towards the front door, for his usual 'morning run'. He had already checked Atlanta's room and found no sign of her there, so decided to look in the lounge on his way out. Just as he had expected, she was sitting on one of the couches, aimlessly looking around the room. "Hey," Archie said. Her head bolted towards him. She hadn't expected him. "I'm going for a run, you wanna come?" He was already walking towards the door.

"Um, no thanks." Archie froze. _Did she just say _no_, to going for a run? _

"Are you _sure_ you're feeling alright?" He asked, his face the epitome confusion and worry.

"Yes, I'm fine, for the fifth time." She groaned. But Archie could still pick up the tiniest bit of nervousness in her voice.

"Alright…" He said as he exited through the front door.

* * *

After an hour or so Archie returned to the brownstone, only to find Theresa waiting for him in the hall. The scene seemed oddly reminiscent of the events of the previous night. Only this time she looked far less angry. "Hey, um Archie, can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Yeah sure, what's up?"

"Have you noticed anything weird about Atlanta recently?" Archie's head shot up.

"Yeah… Yeah I have. She's been acting really weird ever since yesterday." He quickly looked around to make sure the said girl wasn't watching in the background. "This morning I she didn't even want to go for a run with me. In the years we've been at the brownstone she's never done that. Even when she was on crutches she was still begging me to go running with her!"

Theresa stared at him. "That's all? She's been avoiding me like the plague! She won't even stay in the same room as me!" She complained. "Do you think Cronus did something to her?"

Archie shrugged. "Maybe. But even it was she would never tell us. If I ask her if she's feeling alright one more time she'll probably bite my head off!"

Theresa sighed. "You're right… She's so stubborn she'd never tell us what was wrong."

"So what should we do?"

"I don't know… I think maybe we should just keep an eye on her for a bit. If something is _really _wrong hopefully she'll tell us."

* * *

**Nyeh… This chap is a lot shorter then I wanted it to be. But honestly there isn't anything else I can actually add to it without it just dragging on. But the next chapter will be a lot longer, and have a lot more action.**


	4. Chapter 4

The next week or so passed on, and still Atlanta was not back to her old self. There were no major differences however, just little things. Like not bothering to study for her geography exam, or forgetting to spike her hair up in the morning. She still avoided Theresa, and she was in general far less enthusiastic. She rarely went out running with Archie, and when she did he actually managed to beat her. At first he had found this quite exciting, happy that the others could no longer make fun of him for "getting beaten by a girl". But after a week of it, he was getting worried. There was also a lot less teasing, mocking and violence on Atlanta's part. Which, oddly enough, he missed. She was no longer the strong independent woman he'd grown to know, and well, love.

He had been hoping to ask the gods if they knew anything, but the final exams of the year were coming up soon, and for once the gods had to actually attend to their normal, _teaching _duties, instead of training the young heroes. Conveniently Cronus had decided not to attack, but Jay had still insisted on continuing training, and became almost a stand in Ares. In fact he probably trained them harder than Ares did…

* * *

The team were all sitting in the lounge, exhausted from one of Jay's new training sessions. Surprisingly Atlanta was actually willing to sit in the same room as Theresa. Though she was sitting as far away from her as she could get. A loud banging on the door sounded, drawing everyone's attention to the front of the house. Sighing, Archie stood up. "I'll get it." He turned the corner, and opened the door with a click. But when he saw who was on the other side of the door, he froze.

"Archie!" A slender pair of arms wound themselves tightly around his waist.

"Atlanta?" He was slightly confused as to how Atlanta had managed to get from the lounge to the front door, but he wasn't one to turn down a hug from Atlanta. He quickly returned to embrace, only for Atlanta to pull away sharply and slap him across the face.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"For not coming to find me earlier!" She complained. "Scratch that, _at all_!"

"Find you? What? You were in the living room just now?"

"LIVING ROOM!? I wasn't in the fucking living room! I've been stuck in a lousy cave for a week!" She yelled.

"No… You were in the living room." He replied slowly. Just as Atlanta opened her mouth to respond, the rest of the team walked in.

"We heard yelling what's going…" They all froze when they caught sight of Atlanta in the doorway.

"Oh my god…" Archie turned around to see what they were looking at, when he saw Atlanta. Not the one in the doorway, but the one who had been in the living room.

"Who the fuck is SHE!?" Atlanta (the doorway one) screamed. The other Atlanta looked utterly mortified.

"Archie what is going on here?" Jay asked, somehow sounding calm.

"How the hell should I know?"

"I dunno, you're the most likely to try and clone Atlanta out of everyone here." Neil remarked.

"Hey!" Archie exclaimed.

"Enough fighting you two. One of these Atlanta's is obviously a fake, I'm guessing from Cronus. We have to work out which one it is." Jay turned to face Archie. "Archie, any ideas?" He froze.

"Why do you keep asking me about this?"

"Wait!" All attention turned to face the non-doorway quickly reached into her shirt and pulled out a round, golden object. "Look, I have the pendant thingy!"

"That bitch stole my pendant!"

"Herry, get her." Jay directed him towards the Atlanta by the door. Her facial expression quickly changed from anger and frustration, to something Archie never thought he'd see. Pleading.

Herry quickly moved Archie out of the way with rather forceful shove. "Wait I…" He tried to interrupt, but Herry ignored him. With speed she would envy, he slammed Atlanta's head into the door frame. Her limp body slumped against the wall, unconscious. Archie felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder. He turned to see Jay staring at him. "I know what you're thinking, but don't worry. That's not Atlanta."

Removing his hand, Jay turned back to face Herry. "Alright, we need to get her out of here, before she contacts Cronus. Put her in the truck and we'll get going." He turned back to face Archie. "I'm assuming you don't want to come," The purple haired boy quickly shook his head. Odie and Neil had already gathered outside, waiting to leave. "Okay, Theresa? Atlanta?" They two girls were standing further down the hall. Theresa had her hand on Atlanta's shoulder, likely an attempt to comfort her. But upon closer examination, one would see that Theresa's facial expression was far from comforting. She looked alarmed. Her attention was not directed at the doorway, but at the 'real' Atlanta standing before her. "Um, I just remembered, I have some uh, study to do. Yeah…" She quickly backed away from Atlanta and raced up to her room. "Well, I'll come." Atlanta said, walking towards the door.

"Alright. We'll get going then. Also, Herry, we should probably stop by the high school later. We need to let them know about this whole thing." At these instructions Atlanta's head shot up. Archie could have sworn he saw a small smile creep onto her petite face as the team walked out the door. Sighing, he turned his body away from the window as the car pulled away from the building.

Sluggishly he walked down to his bedroom. There was something about that 'fake' Atlanta. She seemed so, well, Atlanta! But she couldn't be 'real' could she? The 'real' Atlanta had the pendant. She didn't. He guessed he was going to have to just hope that Jay had made the right choice…

* * *

**Ooh… Double Atlantas? What's going on here? And again, all reviews are appreciated.**


	5. Chapter 5

Now far away from the home of the young heroes, a small girl sat on the side of the road. She had her knees pulled up to her chest, hiding her tear stained face from the world. Occasionally someone would come past and ask her if she was alright, but she would just ignore them. That is until one fuchsia car pulled up in front of her. At first she took no notice of it, but then another, taller girl came to stand in front of her.

"Oh Atlanta…" The young girl's head shot up upon hearing her name.

"Theresa!" Her face lit up, and she quickly leapt to her feet. With strength Herry would envy, she wrapped her arms around the ginger haired girl. "You recognise me! You really recognise me!" She cried.

"Of course I did!" Pulling apart from the hug, she tapped a finger against her forehead. "Mind reading powers remember." Atlanta grinned, but then frowned.

"What about the others? Do they know?" She asked.

"Sorry, no. I thought it would be best if the fake you didn't know I was in on her tricks."

"Oh…" The girl's face fell.

"Oh how sweet…" The two girls turned around sharply, and gasped in shock at the man standing before them.

"Cronus…" Atlanta hissed.

"Oh hello dear Atlanta. I was wondering where you got too. I trust your reunion with your friends went well?" He remarked.

"You! You wanted this to happen didn't you!?" She yelled. The only thing preventing her from ripping Cronus to shreds was Theresa's hand on her shoulder.

"Well, I had hoped that you wouldn't have gone and escaped, but I guess I should have expected as much from you." He replied. "Oh and, if I may ask, where a bouts is your little double-ganger right now?" Theresa gasped.

"Oh my god… We have to stop them!"

"What do you mean?"

"They're going to the gods!" Atlanta stiffened, suddenly realising how drastic their situation was. Theresa quickly whipped out her PMR, dialling Jay's number. But after a few seconds of no answer, put it away.

"Theresa! Look out!" Before she even had the time to look up, Atlanta had thrust the girl out of the way of a speeding fireball.

"You honestly didn't think I would be letting you get away that easily?" Cronus said, his voice malicious. "I can't have you ratting her out to your friends just yet." Atlanta pulled Theresa up off the ground as Cronus shot more flaming projectiles at them. The two girls then split off in separate directions, hoping to make each other harder targets. Theresa ran to the right and hid in the alleyway of a large building. Atlanta ran to the left, hiding behind a small car.

As she skidded to a halt, the young girl suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion overflow her body. Her legs were shaking, the world around her spinning in circles. A clang sounded on the wall next to her, and even with her blurred vision she was able to identify one of Cronus' scythes in it. With a long cord attached to it. Her mind told her to run, but for once in her life her body just wouldn't co-operate. Suddenly she felt her legs collapse under her weight, and she fell to the floor. The last thing she remembered before the darkness overcame her vision was the sound of the wall next to her tumbling down.

* * *

"What the hell happened to her?"

"I don't know, she just passed out while we were fighting Cronus!"

Atlanta groaned as she slowly came to, the two voices coming from somewhere next to her echoing throughout her brain. _Wait a minute… Two? _Her eyes snapped open to see who the mysterious other person was. A bright smile stretched across her face as she realised who it was. "Archie!" She cried, wrapping her arms tightly around the boy. Archie was startled to say the least. Mostly because a few seconds ago she had been unconscious. But after a few seconds he still returned the hug. "I knew you'd recognise me." She whispered into his ear.

Archie then pulled away from the hug, his hands on her shoulders. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" Theresa frowned.

"Atlanta, you just passed out in the middle of the street! If Archie hadn't come along and saved you you would have been crushed!"

"Well, I feel fine now! Wait, what happened to Cronus?"

"He left after you passed out, never saw Archie coming." Theresa replied, before turning to face Archie again. "That reminds me, what _are _you doing here?"

"Well, I dunno. I guess I just was a bit suspicious of the other 'Atlanta'." He turned back to face said girl. "In the five or so minutes you were there you behaved more, 'Atlanta-y' then she had in a whole week. Also, I noticed you were gone," He gestured towards Theresa. "And you were heading to the same place they dropped Atlanta off at."

Turning his attention back to Atlanta, his facial expression became rather quizzical. "But I'm still not one hundred per cent sure you are the real Atlanta, so can I just ask you a quick question?" Atlanta nodded, though slightly disappointed he didn't trust her. "Your geography exam is on Monday." The girl froze.

"WHAT!?" She cried, frantically clutching at loose strands of hair. "I'm never going to be able to get enough study done now! Of all the times for me to get caught up in all this shit it had to be-" Her little freak out was quickly interrupted by Archie abruptly pulling her into his arms. "There's the Atlanta I love!" He replied, grinning from ear to ear.

"Well as much as I'd love to sit here watching you two flirt with each other, we need to stop fake-Atlanta from finding the gods." Theresa mocked, enjoying the annoyed look that appeared on Archie's face.

Grabbing Atlanta's hand, he helped her up off the ground. Gently he placed a hand around her waist, guiding her over to the car, in case she collapsed again. But after a few seconds he pulled away sharply, a look of pure disgust on his face. "Oh my god! Your waist is a fucking stick! When was the last time you ate!?" He cried. Atlanta thought for a second.

"Uh… Not since Cronus kidnapped me, so about a week or so?"

"WHAT!? No wonder you passed out! Oh god you must be starving!" He quickly reached into his hoodie pocket, searching for something. "Here, I was saving this for lunch later, but you obviously need it more." He handed her a small packet of what looked to be a muesli bar. The young girl's face lit up, and she quickly snatched the item from his hand. She ripped the packaging off, before wolfing the food down in a matter of seconds.

After making sure all the crumbs had been swallowed, she flung her arms around Archie's neck, before kissing him on the cheek. "Thank you!" She exclaimed. Archie's face turned bright red at the sudden show of affection.

"Can you two hurry up please? We need to get going!" Theresa complained loudly. Laughing, the two of them ran into the back seat of her car. Within a matter of seconds the engine was roaring, the car speeding off towards the school.

"Hey um, Atlanta?" Archie asked nervously.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"I- I'm really sorry about not coming to save you from Cronus, and for not stopping Herry from knocking you out, and-"

"Archie calm down, it's alright. I don't blame you. I mean how were you supposed to know that wasn't really me. Okay, I may have been a bit pissed off at first, but you came through for me when I really needed you." Atlanta interrupted. "And, without the aid of any creepy voodoo powers."

"I heard that!" Theresa cried, though her tone suggested the phrase was aimed in a teasing manner.

"Also you gave me food."


	6. Chapter 6

They hadn't been driving for very long when a soft ringing noise sounded. Archie quickly realised the sound was coming from his pocket. He signalled to Atlanta to stay quiet as he pulled out the small device. Jay's face appeared on screen.

"Hey Jay, what's up." It was then Archie noticed the panic stricken look on the other man's face.

"Archie, we have a problem." said Jay. "You know when those two Atlantas showed up this morning?"

"Yeah."

"Well… It turns out we saved the wrong one…"

"Really?" Archie attempted to sound serious, but was finding it rather difficult.

"Yeah, we took her to the gods and she out of the blue starts attacking us and the gods! She knocked out Herry and fractured Odie's wrist! Then she just ran off."

"Wow." This time he genuinely was surprised.

"Persephone was able to read her mind before she took off however. She says there's no way that was Atlanta."

"So what do you want me to do about it?"

"I need you and Theresa to go and track down the real Atlanta, I'll tell you guys where she-"

"Two steps ahead of you Jay." Archie exclaimed, grinning wildly. Spontaneously he wrapped his arm around Atlanta, pulling her into the view of the phone's camera.

"Atlanta! How did you find her?"

"Well, as much as I hate to admit it, it was mostly Theresa's doing."

"Well, that's great! Can you guys head back to the school then? Preferably quickly. The gods kinda sent Thanatos after you. Well, the fake you."

"What!?" Atlanta cried loudly.

"Well we had to track her down quickly, I mean she knows where the gods live now! That's why I wanted you guys to find her, so he would pick up the right one." Atlanta frowned at the phone screen, unimpressed. "Well, anyway, I gotta go check on the others. See you soon."

Theresa upon realising the conversation had ended began to speed up the vehicle. Her attention was no longer diverted. But she soon braked again as an elderly man began waving down her car. He had his face hidden as he spoke. "Oh, sorry to bother you, but I was hoping if you might possibly give me some directions?"

"Um, I guess? Where do you want to go?" Archie wasn't quite as open to the strange man however. Narrowing his eyes, he examined the man. He froze.

"Theresa drive!" Yelled the boy.

"Wha…"

"JUST DO IT!" Theresa obeyed his orders. When Archie was this serious, you knew it was wise to obey him. The car sped off in a flash, abandoning the old man. Atlanta, confused by Archie's actions, turned back to look at the man. She gasped loudly. The man's form was twisting in shape, large skeletal wings sprouting from its back. His whole body soon became only bone.

"Oh my god… That. That was Thanatos!?" She cried. Archie nodded.

"How did you know?" Theresa questioned, not diverting her eyes from the road.

"You generally don't forget the face of the guy who kidnapped you from a dark, creepy alley…" He replied sarcastically.

The creature was quickly gaining on Theresa's car. Archie and Atlanta were both extremely thankful that the car's roof had been put up prior to their encounter. However they still felt the need to duck below the seats, in case he managed to take a swipe at the windows.

"Uh, Theresa? Got any ideas on how to ditch him?" Atlanta said, her voice sounding quite anxious.

"I don't know!? I'm just concentrating on driving!"

"Wait, I think I've got an idea." Archie began. "Theresa, turn around the car and head back to the brownstone."

"What?"

"As soon as you turn the corner we'll jump out, but you can keep driving. Thanatos will go after you, while we take my motor cycle to school."

"How exactly is that going to work?" Theresa questioned. "He's the god of death! It won't take him long to fly around and track you down."

"Ah, but that's the thing, on my bike we'll be wearing helmets. Thus, no one can see your hair." Jokingly he began ruffling the girl's bright red hair. She quickly attempted to bat away his hands, laughing loudly.

"I don't know, it sounds a bit risky." Theresa interrupted.

"Oh come on, we'll only be gone for like five minutes, by the time he works it out we'll already be at the school!" Atlanta said. Theresa grinned at her.

"You just wanna get food don't you?"

"Yeah pretty much."

"Alright, I guess it's the only thing we've got." She sighed, looking behind her quickly to see how far behind them Thanatos was. He was at least a few metres away. Still, Theresa felt it was necessary to speed up the vehicle.

It was not long before the car arrived at the turn to the brownstone. Thanatos was a fair way behind, but not far enough to have lost them. Theresa pulled on the brakes, and the two in the back swung open the door and raced out. They both stumbled slightly, as the car had not yet come to a complete stop. The sound of flapping wings could be heard from around the corner. Acting quickly Archie grabbed Atlanta's wrist. He pulled her into a small alleyway, out of the view of any passers-by. Almost instantly the skeletal man flew by in chase of Theresa's car.

"What do ya know? Your plan actually worked." Atlanta whispered.

"Was there ever any doubt?" She laughed. Making sure Thanatos was no longer in view, the two walked into the open. The two quickly raced off in the direction of the large building they called home. They knew Theresa wouldn't be able to distract Thanatos for long.

* * *

Atlanta walked into the garage, a half-eaten apple in her hands. She would have preferred something more substantial to eat, but they didn't have time. Archie was already sitting on the motorcycle, ready to leave. With perfect aim, she threw to devoured apple core into a nearby bin. She put on her helmet, making sure to tuck in any loose strands of her fiery hair. Taking a seat on the bike, she loosely wrapped her arms around Archie torso. Without delay the two sped off towards the school. Occasionally one of them may have looked around in search of Thanatos. Just in case. But he was never there.

After a few minutes Archie felt the side of Atlanta's head come to rest on his upper back. Her breathing had slowed down, and he could hear her mumbling to herself quietly.

"Atlanta?" He asked, curious of the cause of her behaviour. Instead of responding back however, she just nuzzled her head against the soft fabric of his hoodie. She let out a soft sigh.

"Atlanta, are you asleep?" He questioned, making his voice much louder, in an effort to wake her up. The girl's eyes quickly snapped open.

"Huh what?" Archie felt her head snap up from its resting place on his back. "No… No I'm perfectly awake." She said as her mouth gaped open in an audible yawn. Archie just laughed.

"Of course you weren't." He replied, speeding up the motorcycle as they grew closer to the school.


	7. Chapter 7

Hitting the brakes on his motorcycle, Archie pulled over at the front of the school. Atlanta released the grip she had on his torso and stepped off of the vehicle. She had somehow managed to stay awake for the remainder of the drive. They quickly made their way into the high school. Thanatos had not managed to find them yet, but they didn't really want to take any chances.

As they approached the door to the Janitor's closet Atlanta motioned to pull out her pendant. After searching for it for a few seconds, it dawned on her that her double still had it. She sighed audibly in frustration. "Remind me to get my pendant back the next time we see that bitch." Archie just laughed at her, having already opened the door with his own pendant.

Seeing that the door was open, Atlanta raced in, eager to get answers from her friends and the gods. After entering the portal, she found herself being greeted by none other than Herry. As soon as he caught sight of her, he froze. "Hey Her-" Her sentence trailed off as Herry began walking towards her, the expression on his face looking far from pleased to see her. "Herry? What are you…"

Before she could react Herry gripped his hand around her neck. With immense strength he slammed her into the wall, holding her body slightly above the ground. The grip on her neck was tight, not enough to fully suffocate her, but it still made breathing rather difficult. Let alone talking. "Herry…Please! Stop!" She wheezed.

"You attacked us! I thought you were our friend!" He hissed, his voice sounding pained.

She opened her mouth to explain, when a flying fist disrupted her vision. The hold on her neck immediately vanished as Herry was knocked out of the way. Her body collided with the ground with a soft thud. She quickly began gasping for air, finally able to breathe normally again.

After her breathing returned to normal, she was able to identify who had saved her. Archie was standing opposite Herry, his fists clenched in anger. She noticed Herry was also sporting a black eye from where he had punched him.

"Archie what the hell!? She attacked us!" Herry yelled.

"You idiot, that wasn't Atlanta!" Archie hissed in response. "Didn't Jay explain it to you!?"

"No… Explain what? What are you talking about!?"

"The Atlanta that attacked you wasn't Atlanta! It was some fake one sent by Cronus! This is the real Atlanta. The very same one you knocked out and threw into the back of your truck!" Herry froze. His brain had just received a lot of information, which was rather difficult to process. But finally, after realizing what he'd done, his head snapped up.

"Oh god…" Immediately he ran towards Atlanta, and before Archie could stop him, pulled her into a strong bear hug. "I'm so sorry! I can't believe I was such an idiot!" Atlanta just laughed at him.

"Calm down it's okay, it's not your fault." She responded, her voice still hoarse from their previous encounter. Herry quickly pulled apart from the hug.

"Shit are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine! Frankly by the looks of things you took more of a beating than I did!" She pointed at Herry's bruised eye.

It was then that Archie stepped in. "Come on then, we need to get you to Chiron." Atlanta frowned at him. "Like I just told you, I AM FINE!"

"Uh, Atlanta, Herry may not have hurt you, but I know I definitely can't say the same about Cronus." He retorted. Atlanta glared at him for a few seconds, only to sigh in defeat. "All right, fine! Let's go." The three of them made their way towards the centaur's office, Herry spouting a constant stream of apologies along the way.

* * *

Upon entering the small room, they were greeted by their remaining team mates.

"Herry! There you are, I never got the chance to expl-" Jay immediately froze when he caught a look at Herry's bruised face. "What the hell happened to you!?" As he finished his sentence Archie and Atlanta walked in after him. Herry gingerly pointed a finger at Archie.

"I wouldn't have had to if you had actually told him the Atlanta that was about to walk through the door _wasn't _going to kill him." Archie responded, catching the devil stare Jay was sending him.

"Did you really have to punch him?" Jay complained.

"He was strangling her! You really think I'm going stop and think, Oh, maybe I should go easier on the guy who's about to kill my girlfriend?" Jay sighed.

"I guess I'll let you off just this once, considering you found Atlanta. Wait, I thought you said Theresa was with you?"

"She was, but we got her to distract Thanatos for us."

"You WHAT!?" Jay cried.

"Calm down Jay, I'm sure she'll be fine! Once Thanatos works out we aren't there he'll leave her alone." Atlanta reassured. Jay sighed once again. "Alright… Oh, and Atlanta, you're not still mad at me for thinking you were the fake?"

"Yes." Atlanta replied irritably.

Almost on cue Chiron walked in. He flinched at the sight of Atlanta, his mind taking a few seconds to register that this one was not going to attack him. "Ah, I see you managed to find her." Seeing the horse man enter, Archie quickly steered Atlanta away from Jay. "The others told me you might be needing some medical attention." The young girl sighed, seeing the glare Archie was sending her way. "Yes…"

"Alright then, come sit here and I will ensure everything is in order." He spent the next ten minutes or so examining Atlanta's physical health. Archie stood nervously next to the seat, eager to find out if there were any negative side effects of the amount of time she'd spent with Cronus. He eventually took a step back.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Archie asked.

"She has one of the most serious cases of malnutrition I have seen in years, but yes, she will be fine. As long as she gets plenty of food and sleep she will be back to normal in a few days."

"See I told you." Atlanta said, mocking Archie's worry for her.

"But, I would recommend you take it easy over the next few days. Your body is extremely drained of fuel, and any athletic activities could have drastic consequences. So it would be best if you would take a break from any training or battling Cronus, unless it was essential." Atlanta's face fell.

"Seriously? Awww…." She complained. "Honestly Chiron I'm sure I'll be…" She paused as her mouth gaped open into a wide yawn. "Atlanta, you may rest on the chair if you wish." Chiron replied, seeing how tired the girl was. After darting her head around quickly, to make sure no one other than Archie was around, she muttered a small thank you, and lay down across the small chair. She was fast asleep in a matter of seconds.

Archie couldn't help but smile at the snoozing girl in front of him. Without sounding like a stalker, he'd always enjoyed watching her sleep. She was just so, peaceful. For that short period of time he knew he didn't have to worry about what Cronus could throw at them, because he knew she was safe. And he also didn't have to worry about Atlanta getting angry at him for fussing over her. He would have liked to stay there longer, but he could already hear Jay calling him over. Turning away from the girl, he made his way over to the leader.

"Is she going to be alright?"

"Yeah, she's gonna be fine." Jay nodded in response. He opened his mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by another red head appearing behind him.

"Hey, I'm back."

"Theresa! There you are, are you alright?" Jay asked, clearly still not approving of her decision to distract the god of death.

"Yes, I'm fine- Oh my god!" She gasped as she caught sight of Herry. "What happened to you!?" Herry rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I kind of tried to strangle the real Atlanta, thinking she was the fake one…"

"That still doesn't explain the black eye Herry…" He pointed towards Archie.

"Normally I would complain about how stupid of you that was, but right now I frankly am more worried about Atlanta. Where is she?" Theresa asked. Archie pointed behind him, towards the chair she was sleeping on. The older of the girls gasped audibly. "Oh my god what happened?" She cried. Archie stared at her, clearly confused by her reaction. "Calm down, she's fine. She's just taking a nap…"

"Oh…" Odie stepped forward.

"So what are we going to do about this whole two Atlanta's issue?"

"Well, considering that copy Atlanta now knows the location of the gods, she'll probably be heading straight for Cronus. Wherever he is it'll take her a while to get there on foot." Jay explained.

"So what do you suppose we do?"

"We'll need to find her, and take her out before she gets the chance to tell him. But how we do that, I'm still not sure." Odie looked up again.

"Actually, I think I might know how to do that. After we rescued 'Atlanta'," Odie made small quotation marks in the air. "From Cronus, she was missing her PMR so I gave her a new one. I doubt she would have thought to get rid of it."

"Odie you're a genius!" Theresa said, smiling wildly. Archie turned around, glancing at Atlanta.

"What do we do about her?"

"She should stay here. Like Chiron said, she needs rest. And her being there would just confuse us all. Now let's get going." Said Jay.

"Should we wake her up?" Archie asked.

"Yeah, may as well let her know what's going on."

Archie made his way over to the sleeping girl. He gently shook her awake. He didn't really want to disturb her, but it was better than leaving her alone and confused. Her eyes fluttered open and she groaned loudly.

"Why are you waking me up?" She complained.

"Sorry." He replied. "We're going to stop your evil twin. You can stay here with Chiron. Just wanted to let you know before we left." Atlanta shot up from where she was sitting.

"Oh hell no. There is no way I'm staying here while you guys go kick that bitches ass!" She protested loudly. "I wanna give that faker a piece of my mind! And my fist!" Archie sighed.

"I know you do. I would too. But you can't. You heard Chiron! You need rest! You can't fight, not like this."

"I feel fine!" She cried.

"Atlanta you passed out in the middle of the street last time you fought Cronus!" Archie was quickly beginning to lose his temper.

"That's because I was tired and hungry! I've had something to eat and now I feel much better! Just let me come with you!"

"Even if we did, how the hell are we supposed to tell you apart from 'her' in the middle of battle?"

"Because I'll be the one kicking major ass!"

Atlanta was not going to step down. Archie could see this. She wanted revenge, and she was going to get it. One way or another. She had the little look on her face. The one where you knew you had really pissed her off. If you didn't back down you were going to get a fist to the face. And for some odd reason, he found himself smiling at this. It was just so, Atlanta. He never realised how much he had missed her little quirks, and how much of a terrible actor that doppelganger had been.

"Alright… Fine. You can come with us. But only because I know you'll just end up following us anyway…" Archie responded, a wide grin on his face. The girl's scowl quickly faded away into a smile.

"Thank you."


	8. Chapter 8

**Well, this is the final chapter. Thanks to all the reviewers, you were awesome. c:**

* * *

Archie and Atlanta walked back towards the rest of their group.

"I'm coming with you!" Atlanta exclaimed proudly. Jay stared at the two of them, frowning.

"Archie, I thought I told you we were making her _stay_." He complained.

"I know, I tried to get her to, but she wouldn't listen! You know how stubborn she is!" Archie retorted. Jay sighed.

"Alright fine… But what are we gonna do about telling them apart?" Theresa smiled.

"I think I have an idea… Archie give her your hoodie."

"What? Why? How is that going to help?"

"Simple. Your copy won't be wearing it, plus it will keep her warm. Which in her condition is probably a good idea. And if we run into Thanatos the hood will conceal her hair." She explained. Archie raised an eyebrow.

"Wow. That's actually a surprisingly good idea. Especially coming from you." He then removed the blue jersey and handed it to the girl next to him. She slipped on the item of clothing, and stretched her arms through it. The hoodie was noticeably large on her, her fingers only just poking out the ends. "Jesus Archie this thing is massive." He just laughed at her.

"No you're just short." She poked her tongue out at him. Jay coughed loudly.

"If you two are done? We have a mission to attend to." He was already walking out the door of the centaur's office. The rest of the team quickly walked after him, the drastic nature of their situation dawning on them.

* * *

Herry's truck pulled up in front of a small forest on the far side of town. The tracker on Odie's PMR had traced Atlanta's double to this location. Sadly the forest was too dense for the vehicle to pass through, so much to Neil's dismay, they were forced to travel on foot. After clambering out of the truck, Jay quickly went about giving the team orders. "Alright, we need to track her down as quick as possible. If she gets to Cronus before we do it is all over." Atlanta quickly began scanning the woodland for any sign of her twin. A faint flash of red in the distance caught her eye.

"Found her!" She cried, before speeding off after it. The rest of the team's heads all shit around, having forgotten how spontaneous the girl was after a week without her.

"Atlanta! Wait up!" Archie yelled as he ran after her, soon followed by the remainder of his friends.

Atlanta skidded to a halt as she entered a large clearing. Standing directly in the centre was the very person she was hunting. She had her back turned, but Atlanta could tell the other girl knew she was there. "You…" She hissed. "You're the one who's made my past week a living hell!" With immense amounts of speed she raced towards her opponent. Before the girl could even blink, a small fist had been launched into her face. "You're going to pay for what you put me through!" She yelled.

The sound of footsteps behind her alerted her to the arrival of her friends.

"Atlanta!" Turning her head around she could see Archie racing towards her, as she was about to lay another blow upon her opponent. But as her attention was diverted the girl kicked Atlanta in the stomach, knocking her back a few steps. "I don't need your guys help, I can handle this myself!" She cried, stabling herself. It wasn't long before Archie was standing at her side.

"No way I'm letting you fight her on your own. You're not the only one who wants to kick her ass." He remarked, and Atlanta couldn't help but smile a little.

"Alright… Fine."

The team of heroes had quickly surrounded Atlanta's double. "Give up, you're outnumbered." Jay ordered, pointing his sword at her.

"Jay, I wouldn't be so sure about that…" A voice from behind them caused them to immediately turn around in shock. Standing before them was a man they knew all too well. Behind him stood three large giants, one of them the team immediately recognised as the infamous Agnon.

"Cronus…" The leader hissed, redirecting his weapon.

"Ah, Atlanta. I see you decided to join us as well." The said girl narrowed her eyes at him. "You know I have a friend of mine who will be very happy to see you. He should be here any minute now…" The man said sinisterly. The young girl's eyes immediately shot open, realising what he meant.

"Thanatos…" She whispered.

"Alright. Archie you take the twin, I'll deal with Cronus. Everyone else, take out the giants." Jay directed, making sure his voice was low enough to not be heard by their opponents.

"What!? Why don't I get to-" Atlanta immediately stopped arguing as she saw the look he gave her. "Okay. Giants are good…" The team quickly split up into their separate groups.

* * *

Herry quickly managed to leap on top of his giant. He had wrapped his arms around its neck, strangling it. The creature was flailing its arms around in a wild attempt to remove the boy from his back. Odie and Neil were attempting to taser their giant, while racing around trying to dodge its blows. Atlanta was running circles around her giant, distracting it while Theresa attacked it. The older of the girls had noticed however that her friend was running much slower than usual. It was still incredibly fast by human standards, but not for her. She launched her foot into the giant's face, causing him to plummet to the ground in a heap. He was out cold. "Atlanta, hey. Are you feeling alright?"

"Theresa I'm _fine_. I wish you'd all just stop worrying about me!" She complained.

"Okay, okay. If you're sure…" Still, she couldn't help but fear for the young girl. She could only hope that the girl was telling the truth, and not trying to sound tough.

Archie meanwhile was having slightly more trouble battling his opponent. She was better at fighting than he had expected, but Cronus obviously hadn't given her Atlanta's speed. Only that wasn't the problem. Fighting he could handle. But fighting someone who looked identical to his own girlfriend? Not so much. He had originally thought he would be happy to fight the double, considering what it put the real Atlanta through. But when it actually came to fighting her, he just couldn't do it. He _knew _she wasn't really Atlanta. But he just couldn't do it. So instead he found himself attempting to dodge all of the girl's blows.

Jay and Cronus however were somewhat more evenly matched. Every swipe Jay could aim at the man was counter by a scythe, and vice versa. The problem was, Jay was getting tired. Cronus wasn't.

The boy launched his sword towards his opponent's stomach. But it was easily dodged. Before Jay could even blink, the older man's golden scythe was hooked onto his waist, and he was being flung through the air. He hit the ground with a large thud, the wind knocked right out of him. Grinning darkly, Cronus approached the boy. His scythe was raised, ready to lay the final blow. But before he could, a flying foot knocked it square out of his hand. The force of the kick caused him to flinch back, wincing at the pain in his hands. The villain turned his head to identify the offender. It was none other than the red head he'd had imprisoned for the past week. She was looking rather smug.

A fireball quickly formed in his hand, which soon morphed into a new weapon. The girl began to race off, away from the man. But he was too quick. His weapon caught the back of her new found hoodie. With one swift motion the clothing was ripped down the middle. The yank on it had also pulled the girl wearing it to the ground. She was now in a similar position to what her leader had been in a few minutes ago. And again, one of her friends came to her aid. This time it was the team's other red haired girl.

But unfortunately for her, she was not fast enough. Cronus saw her coming, and effortlessly blasted her out of the way, knocking her out cold. "Theresa!" She heard her leader cry in the background. He was only now getting to his feet.

But this distraction gave Atlanta just enough time to get out of the way of Cronus' wrath. Leaving the hoodie on the ground, she was now left in her normal attire of cargo pants and a t-shirt.

"Wow Cronus. You ruined my hoodie! I'm so scared." She taunted sarcastically. "I think you're losing your touch." The old man grinned.

"Oh but Atlanta. I wasn't aiming at you in the first place…" The girl was confused. _What does he mean by- _

Her thoughts were soon interrupted by a loud, demonic screech coming from behind her. "Oh look Atlanta. That friend of yours I invited is finally here. A bit late though if you ask me." It was then Atlanta realised what he had meant. Without that hoodie, there was no visible difference between her and the doppelganger.

"Well, I best be going then. I think Thanatos will be able to handle things on his own." And with that the man disappeared through a pitch black portal.

"Oh shi-" Before she could even finish her cursing, a bony hand wrapped around her neck, pulling her into the air. She attempted to cry out, only to find her voice box had become extremely restricted by the hand. Instead, she heard someone else cry out her name.

"Atlanta!"

As she was hauled away by the creature she could see it had managed to snatch her double as well. Part of her was pleased that they were finally going to pay for what they had done. The other part was absolutely terrified of what Thanatos was going to do to her.

"Thanatos, stop!" One of her friends cried. It wasn't the same one as before. Their voice was slightly lower. The said 'man' came to a stop in the air.

"I realise young heroes you do not wish to see your friend succumb to death, but I must follow orders."

"And we will let you take the one who has attacked the gods. But one of them is innocent! Let us take her back." It was Jay. That was who the voice belonged to. She could recognise it now.

"I shall allow that. Which one is not the traitor? I shall release her." For a split second Atlanta felt the grip on her neck release, and she began to fall. But then the hand clasped itself around her wrists, hoisting her into the air once more, along with her twin.

She now had a much better view of where she was. Her friends were all standing beneath her. She was also several metres above the ground. Theresa was still unconscious, Herry carrying her limp body in the background.

"Well, that's the problem. We have no way of telling the difference. If you can just wait until my friend over there wakes up…"

"No. I do not have time to wait. You must decide now, or I will simply take them both." Jay sighed, and turned to Archie, who was noticeably anxious about the situation. He nudged the younger boy forward.

"Archie, you're up." He stared at him in shock.

"What!? You want _me_ to try and decide?"

"Well yeah. Without Theresa, you're the one who knows her best. You worked out which one she was before. You can do it again."

"Yeah but then I had a few hours! Not minutes! And how am I supposed to guess when they're both here. If I ask them anything the fake will just copy the real one's answers!" He replied exasperated.

"And what happens if I get it _wrong_? What if I end up killing my own girlfriend?" Jay placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Just relax. You know Atlanta better than even she probably does. You'll make the right choice." Archie sighed, and then took a step towards the floating skeleton. He looked around, trying to think of how to identify which one was _his_ Atlanta.

"Maybe I could… No that wouldn't work. What about…? No…" He began muttering to himself.

"Uhhg… I dunno? Which one of you is the real Atlanta?"

"I AM!" Both of them cried simultaneously.

"I was afraid of that…" He sighed.

"I suggest you make your mind up quickly, I am growing impatient." Atlanta could see Archie wasn't going to be able to make his mind up any time soon. She would have to prove it herself.

"Archie!" She tried to direct his attention towards her. The boy's head shot up. She quickly began biting at the neck of her shirt. At last she found what she was searching for. Tugging at the thin thread now between her teeth, she pulled out a small pendant from beneath her shirt. His eyes widened as he recognised the object. It was a small circular object, with a smaller circle carved into the centre. There were also a series of black lines around the edges.

"That… That's the pendant I gave you." He stated. Atlanta nodded. A smile broke out onto his face.

The other 'Atlanta' had begun to panic. If she didn't try and think of some way to get out of this, she was going to die. "Um, uh… Look! I have a pendant too?" She pulled out a much larger golden pendant, with an A engraved into it. Archie narrowed his eyes at the girl. Earlier the fake Atlanta had been in possession of the same necklace. This only further cemented his decision.

"Thanatos. The one on the right is innocent. Let her go."

The elderly god nodded, releasing his grasp on the girl. She let out a small cry as she fell through the air. She had expected him to simply place her on the ground, not drop her. But before she collided with the hard ground, a pair of arms connected with her torso, breaking her fall. She looked up to see Archie's face staring down at her.

"Wow. Nice catch." She remarked, smirking.

"You're welcome." His smile then faded slightly. "I can't believe you're still wearing that thing. I gave it to you like six months ago. And you're not really the one to wear jewellery…" She smiled and wrapped her arms loosely around his neck.

"Well you never know when you're going to be attacked by a crazed, blood thirsty were-wolf." Her head then lowered slightly, and her voice faded into a whisper. "Plus it was kinda sweet you saving my life and all… Even though you were scared shitless." She smiled at him again, only this time it was much more sincere.

"Now can you put me down? You know I hate being carried around."

Meanwhile, Thanatos had begun flying away with the doppelganger, who was pleading to let her live. Jay stepped forward.

"Thanatos wait."

"What is it now? I already gave you the girl you wanted? I am not making any more deals with you." He gestured towards Archie and Atlanta, who had

"I know, I know. I just want to talk to her for a few minutes. Then you can do whatever you want with her." Jay explained, his hands raised in defence. Thanatos narrowed his eyes at him.

"Alright…" The girl's eyes widened.

"Why…"

"I want to know who you are. You obviously aren't who you say you are." She looked around for a few seconds, before sighing.

"Alright." Suddenly the body of the girl changed. The small, red haired girl was replaced with a taller woman. The blue shirt and cargo pants replaced with a long toga. She was much older than Atlanta. Not elderly, but more, adult. Thanatos fly upwards slightly in surprise.

"This is not the girl I was asked to find. You all tricked me into releasing the real traitor!" He hissed, glaring at the real Atlanta.

"No!" Archie cried, pulling Atlanta into his arms. He wasn't about to lose her again.

"Wait stop!" The woman Thanatos was carrying cried. "They didn't trick you. I am the traitor you speak of. I am the one who attacked the gods. I was using the form of the young girl the whole time, so that I could infiltrate the gods' headquarters." The skeleton relaxed somewhat, deciding to listen to the woman.

"Who are you?" Atlanta asked, pushing herself out of Archie's grip.

"I am Coronis." The name received nothing but confused looks from the team. Even Jay, the one with the most expansive knowledge of Greek Mythology, was at a loss. "I was the mother of Asclepius. I was in love with Ischys when I was pregnant with him. But the gods found out about my affair, and sent Artemis to kill me. Then they took away my child and killed my father!" She was in tears by the end of her story. "Cronus promised me revenge against the gods. I just had to impersonate the student of the one who killed me all those years ago. It all seemed so perfect!"

Thanatos was growing tired of the woman's tale. "Can I take her to Hades now?" Her eyes widened.

"NO! You can't take me back there PLEASE." She cried. "I'm sorry for everything I did, please!" She stared directly into Atlanta's eyes, pleading. The young girl froze for a second, pondering what to do. Then she stood straight, her mind made up. "No. Because of you I was left to rot in a cave for a week thinking my friends had abandoned me!" She hissed. "Take her away." And with that, the god of death flew away, the sounds of the woman's screams fading into the distance.

"Are you alright?" Archie asked, seeing the solemn look on the young girl's face.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'll- I'll be fine." He stared at her for a second. Something told him she wasn't being as truthful as she seemed. "Oh, I think Theresa's waking up." She quickly changed the subject, seeing her friends gathering around the no longer unconscious form of her friend. The boy followed after her at a slower pace, shaking his head.

* * *

"Put me down!" Atlanta complained, trying to squirm free of Archie's grasp. "No." He carried her through the door of her room. "You need sleep! Like Chiron said."

"I don't need sleep! I need to study! I have a geography exam in three days!" She tried to push against his chest, but to no avail.

"You can study tomorrow!" Archie said. He walked over to her bed and dropped her onto it. She landed with a soft 'oomff'. Before she could get up again he quickly pulled the covers up to her neck. He gently began running his hand through her hair, simultaneously forcing her head against the soft pillow. Her eyes began fluttering as she tried to stay awake.

"Go to sleeeep." He whispered.

"I'm not tired… I'm perfectly-" Her mouth opened up into a wide yawn. "-awake." Her eyes then at last closed, unable to resist the warm welcome of a soft bed. Archie smiled, and then placed a quick kiss on her forehead. He was about to exit the girl's room, when a book caught his eye. It was Atlanta's geography text book. Grinning wildly, he picked it up and walked out of the room with it. As he was about to close the door, a loud groan of protest cried out from behind him.

"It's great to have you back Atlanta." He replied before closing the door, book in hand.

* * *

**Welp, that's the end. I was never really expecting this story to be a very long one. But don't worry, I (probably) won't be taking another years break like last time… I have about three other fan fic ideas mulling around in my head. 2 CotT ones, and another one which is a Green Lantern the Animated series/Portal crossover. I won't go into the GLTAS/Portal one now, if you want more on that there's more info on my tumblr (via my profile). Just chuck 'tagged/Portal' on the end of the url and you should find it.**

**As for the CotT ones, there's two. One is called 'In Blackest Day', and the other the title is still pending. I'll just call it 'Renegade' for now tho.**

**Renegade I've had in my head for about the same amount of time as this story. AKA a **_**while**_**. If anyone here is familiar with the Jak and Daxter games (mainly Jak II) it's basically that but with the CotT characters. It's not identical to JaD, just kinda based off of it. There are still some quite major differences. I can't really summarise it for anyone not familiar with the games tho, it's kinda hard without spoiling a lot of major plot twists.**

**In blackest day I've been thinking about for really only a month or so now. And it is pretty much impossible to summarise. The only thing I can say about it is really, you're all going to HATE me when you read it. God damn some of the shit that goes down in the first chapter is **_**intense**_**. But I'm gonna write it anyway. Cause it's a cool story.**

**The one I'm probably gonna end up writing first tho is the GLTAS one. That one is the most developed out of all of them; I have a concrete ending and beginning, much more so than any of the others. I just need to iron out some more of the middle bits, and then it should be ready to write. Probably in a few months. **


End file.
